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☆ Homebuyers who are hoping for lower prices in 2023 are in for a 'rude awakening' when house hunting
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( Robert Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Some respondents said a souring economic climate could keep them from buying in 2023. One homebuyer told Insider that she is considering moving to a new state to afford a home. "I got sick of wasting money on rent and wanted to see what I could qualify for, but it has not been promising," Jenner told Insider. To Elizabeth Renter, a spokesperson for NerdWallet, these survey results show that many homebuyers may be in for a "rude awakening" in 2023. However, Renter said many homebuyers are still facing an uphill battle when it comes to buying a home.

☆ This 'floating city' concept could house up to 50,000 people and be powered by 100% renewable energy. Take a look inside at its vertical gardens, hospitals, and more than 25 acres of interconnected so
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-21 | by ( Robert Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: 1 min

Italian firm Luca Curci Architects and Canadian designer Tim Fu have come up with a 'floating city' concept that they say could be the answer to climate change. The living spaces in the 'floating city' are all connected by walkways, airways, and waterways. Courtesy of Luca Curci Architects + Tim Fu Design

☆ The gravity-defying space-age 'Garcia House' in Los Angeles just hit the market for $16 million. The home is suspended more than 60 feet above a cliff and has an outdoor pool. Take a look inside.
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( Robert Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Architecture firm Marmol Radziner, which specializes in restoring midcentury modern homes, renovated the home in 2003. The preservation project included adding stained walnut cabinetry and a sliding glass door that opens up the living room. Roger DaviesThe home was originally designed for composer Russell Garcia and his wife Gina, according to Vogue Australia. It took the firm about 12 months to fully preserve the home. "Our goal was never to do a slavish restoration, but to create something that maintained the spirit of Lautner's work and also made sense for the 21st century," Radziner told the magazine.

☆ This $22.7 million quail plantation in southwest Georgia is a hunter's paradise. It has five properties and more than 3,500 acres of hunting land — take a look inside.
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( Robert Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Jon Kohler, the seller's agent, told Insider that the property was developed in 1850 by famous architect John Wind, who is known for his Greek Revival style. Courtesy of Jon Kohler & AssociatesKohler told Insider that the property has been primarily used as a quail plantation since it was built in the 1850s. Quail plantations are common in south Georgia because of its lush habitat and diversified selection of tree cover. Many quail plantations were converted from old cotton plantations in the 1880s as wealthy industrialists from the north moved southward after the Civil War, according to research from the University of Tennessee. "Magnolia Hall does not have the traditional markings of an old cotton plantation like a graveyard, and I don't believe the property was ever used to grow cotton," Kohler told Insider.

☆ Frank Lloyd Wright's final house, a 3,100-square-foot home with a private pool and vast views of downtown Phoenix, just hit the market for $8.95 million. Take a look inside.
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Robert Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: 1 min

Architect Erik Peterson with PHX Architecture, one of Wright's apprentices, told the local FOX 10 news station that the famed architect would "want the home to evolve" with its next owner. The mountains surrounding the property are known as the "Phoenix Mountain Preserve." Casey Pickard

☆ Arizona might have to stop construction on homes for more than 800,000 people if it can't find another water source
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( Robert Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Housing plans for upwards of 800,000 people in Arizona might be put on hold because of the state's challenge with water. Newly elected Governor Katie Hobbs made a point to recognize the state's water struggles in her State of the State address on January 9. The state water finance board is reviewing plans for a new water desalination plant, which could help convert groundwater or water imported from Mexico into usable water. However, researchers like Kathleen Ferris at Arizona State university say the plant probably won't be available in time to mitigate the water shortage that Arizona is already experiencing. "We should not be allowing this growth to occur when the water isn't there," Ferris told the Arizona Republic.

☆ One of America's largest homebuilders just opened its first community in the metaverse as more homebuyers in the real world cancel their orders
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( Robert Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

The LA-based builder KB Home opened a first-of-its-kind community in the metaverse on January 17. KB Home's virtual community allows customers to personalize some of the company's model homes to their preferences, from changing the architectural style to customizing the interior design. Different customizable home types offered in KB Homes' metaverse community Courtesy of KB Homes"We know consumers are increasingly immersing themselves and spending more time in virtual spaces," KB Home's CEO Jeffrey Mezger said in the announcement. To combat these issues, Rob McGibney, KB Home's chief operating officer, told investors that the company is focusing on moving homes "as efficiently as possible through the construction cycle." The metaverse community can help alleviate some of these issues by allowing customers to design their new home online before KB begins building it in the real world.

☆ An 'invisible house' in Joshua Tree with a pool in the living room that Lizzo and Demi Lovato have rented is on the market for $18 million — take a look inside
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( Robert Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: 1 min

Matt Adamo, one of the listing agents with AKG, told Insider that his favorite part of the house is the way it transforms between dawn and dusk. 'The lighting in this home is out of this world.' Courtesy Invisible HouseThe home is oriented to face east so that residents and guests can experience a truly breathtaking sunrise over the desert. "You're not just buying square footage with this home," Adamo said. "You're buying a work of art — something that can't be found in any other place on Earth."

☆ Floridians can blame vacation homes and 'oppressive' homeowners associations for their high rents, economist says
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( Robert Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Too many vacation rentals and strict homeowners associations are pushing up housing costs, a study said. According to Johnson, there are too many vacation rentals in the Sunshine State. It's this particular combination of strict HOA rules and the sheer number of vacation rentals is a mixture that is affecting housing affordability negatively, he said. According to Johnson's study, Florida is now home to 9 of the 21 most overpriced rental markets in the US. The number of vacation rentals in the state is only making it harder for people to find affordable places to rent, the study suggests.

☆ A cowboy who won the lottery just sold a sprawling 50,000-acre South Dakota ranch for over $37 million
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-11 | by ( Robert Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: 1 min

The Bismarck Trail Ranch has three homes on the property and also includes a working slaughterhouse, a covered arena, and multiple storage buildings, the real-estate listing shows. The Bismarck Trail Ranch comes with three additional properties, including a slaughterhouse and a working pen. Courtesy of Hall and HallThe property is located in Vale, South Dakota, a town of about 136 people that is 51 miles north of Rapid City. A listing brochure created by listing brokerage Hall and Hall described Bismarck Trail Ranch as a "luxury ranching experience" with most of the working equipment located on the west side and the open meadowland located to the east. The house includes in-floor heating for the cold winter nights and a backup generator to keep power running during bad weather.

Proptech customers, employees, and investors said they went from delighted to disillusioned. Proptech investors eager to capture these trends pumped $32 billion into the industry in 2021. As markets deteriorated, disillusionment set in among proptech customers, investors, and employees. Some customers say they were disappointed buying homes via proptech startupsReal-estate startups like Divvy Homes and Better launched under the auspices of helping customers afford quality homes. Investors in proptech firms are taking financial hitsYou don't need to ask proptech investors whether they're disappointed in the sector's performance — just look at share prices.

☆ Millennials are now the 'roommate generation' after being squeezed out of homeownership by high housing costs, said Redfin CEO
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( Robert Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Redfin CEO Glenn Kelman warns that millennials could become the 'roommate generation' due to high housing costs. Millennial homebuyers may find reprieve in the Midwest or quickly-deflating markets like Boise or Salt Lake City. "We have a whole group of Americans who can't afford homes, and that's happening right as Millennials are coming of homebuying age," Kelman said. One reason is that homes in these markets are typically selling for under their list price. Meanwhile, 59% of homes in Chicago are selling for under their asking price as of October 2022 compared to 45.5% of homes selling for under ask across the US.

☆ A wee cottage perched on top of a New York rooftop is for sale for $2.5 million — take a look inside
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-07 | by ( Robert Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Hershkowitz said in the listing that the 'crown jewel' of this rooftop cottage is its multilevel terrace. Kristina Crane with Evan Joseph StudiosRooftop cottages in New York come in various styles, from chalets to cape cod and even a lighthouse. Some of New York's rooftop cottages are architectural gems. For instance, there is a rooftop property in the West Village that comes with its own meadow, according to StreetEasy. There's also a penthouse on East 36th Street where the owner can see the Empire State Building from their bedroom window, the New York Post reported in 2017.

☆ An increasing number of lawsuits are being filed against real estate agents as home prices continue to fall across the US
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-05 | by ( Robert Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Lawsuits against real estate professionals increased 9% between 2021 and 2022 as home prices declined. Zach Vollmer, SVP of Real Estate at Victor Insurance Managers, expects the total to increase in 2023. Vollmer added that lawsuits targeting real estate professionals are common when home prices fall. The increasing frequency of lawsuits coincides with a slew of predictions from real estate experts who expect home prices to continue to decrease in 2023. In most cases, Vollmer said the lawsuits contain allegations that seek to trigger reimbursements under a real estate professional's liability insurance policy.

☆ A sexy Vegas circus paid $2.5 million in cash to buy a California town in the Mojave Desert and build a 'permanent Burning Man'
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-04 | by ( Robert Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Nipton was previously owned by Jerry Freeman and Roxanne Lang, a California couple who purchased the town for about $200,000 in the 1980s. The Washington Post/Getty ImagesThe sales history for the town is a bit murky. The following year, American Green abandoned its ambitious plans for the town and sold the property to a Scottsdale-based energy company for $7.1 million, the Los Angeles Times reported. Other groups like a religious cult, a cryptocurrency enthusiasts, and investors who wanted to build a train line to Las Vegas have also tried to buy the property, the Wall Street Journal reported. However, the Wall Street Journal also reported that Freeman and Lang were the ones who sold Nipton to Spiegelworld.

☆ The University of California invested $4 billion with Blackstone to buy up rental apartments and student housing, which they see as the bright spots in the real estate market this year
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-03 | by ( Robert Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The University of California is investing $4 billion with Blackstone to acquire rentals and student housing. The investment comes at a crucial time for Blackstone's Real Estate Income Trust Inc. fund — also known as BREIT— a $68 billion property investment vehicle. "We consider BREIT to be one of the best positioned, large-scale real estate portfolios in the US, managed by one of the world's top real estate investors," said Jagdeep Singh Bachher, the University of California's chief investment officer. The University of California's investment could become a model for other universities with large endowment funds — typically in the billions of dollars — that want to invest in real estate investment trusts or commercial real estate assets. BREIT's portfolio includes assets in popular college towns such as Fort Collins, Colorado, where Colorado State University is located, and Baton Rouge, Louisiana, which is home to Louisiana State University, according to the fund's website.

Insider's rising stars of real estate span roles in leasing, affordable housing, and urban planning. We asked 20 of these young industry experts and innovators to offer predictions for 2023. 2022 wreaked havoc on the housing market: Mortgage rates rose at a fast clip, bidding wars cooled, the Airbnb market shifted, and some high-flying proptech darlings crashed back down to earth. Insider picked 30 rising stars of commercial and residential real estate who're transforming the way homes are sold and offices get built. Here are the predictions for 2023 from our rising stars:

☆ This 29-year-old CEO is constructing apartment buildings out of factory-produced modules, and it might make homes more affordable for renters
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-02 | by ( Robert Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Modular construction can make housing more affordable by delivering units at a lower cost, he says. Economies of scale not only reduce material costs, but they can also reduce waste generated during construction, Lawrence added. "Modular construction has the potential to provide housing at a lower cost and deliver buildings in a more cost-effective way than traditional sticks-and-bricks construction," Lawrence said. These apartments are also hitting the market at a time when real wages in Minneapolis are decreasing because of inflation. "We've proved that there are real cost and time savings associated with modular construction," Lawrence said

☆ 9 tech companies that have ditched San Francisco offices in 2022 are a warning sign for cities to rethink their reliance on big firms
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-28 | by ( Robert Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

San Francisco should be a cautionary tale for cities that rely on tech firms to fill office space. At least nine companies have exited office space in the city, . Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff told Bloomberg that San Francisco needed "more diversity" in its economic and tax base, as well as more residential homes and cultural attractions downtown. Meta is planning to leave some of its office space in San Francisco. PayPal left its office in San Francisco this summer.

☆ The share of American homes bought with all cash reached the highest level in 8 years as people wary of high mortgage rates and a looming recession turned to hard real-estate assets instead
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-26 | by ( Robert Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Higher mortgage rates push people to pay all cash for homes to save on interest, Redfin said. Rising interest rates and persistent inflation increased fears of a recession in 2023. Cleveland saw its share of all-cash offers grow from 32% last year to 42% in October, while Philadelphia's grew from 29% to 37%. Selma Hepp, the interim chief economist at CoreLogic, told Insider in November that mortgage rates could go as low as 5.5% by the end of next year. "For homebuyers, it's good to be aware that you can avoid paying high interest rates by paying in cash," Fairweather said.

Insider's rising stars of real estate span roles in leasing, affordable housing, and urban planning. We asked the young achievers about the books that influenced their careers or personal growth. For some of Insider's rising stars of 2022, the subject matter might surprise you. Other rising stars told Insider they wanted to learn from the trials and tribulations of successful people, like the Nike cofounder Phil Knight. Below, find the selection of 29 books that influenced the rising stars, along with their musings of what they learned or how they applied the lessons to their practices.

☆ Airbnb has banned 30 listings where slaves lived or worked, but travelers and the company itself say the platform has other bias issues to address
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-23 | by ( Robert Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The move comes about four months after the company received backlash for listing an 1830s slave cabin in Mississippi. Some travelers and experts say the company still has work to do to reduce instances of bias and discrimination. But some say there are other bias issues on Airbnb’s platform that still need to be addressed. Airbnb defined its booking success rates as a measure of how often people from different perceived racial backgrounds can successfully reserve an Airbnb listing where the host must confirm the booking. The audit sampled 750,000 random reservation requests and found that Black travelers had a 91.4% booking success rate compared to 93.4% for Latinos and 94.1% for Whites.

☆ 21 real-estate startups to bet your career on in 2023
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-21 | by ( Robert Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Thousands of proptech employees were laid off in 2022 because of industry-wide struggles. Insider created this list of proptech startups that have all the makings of future success. The word of the year for proptech startups is … layoffs. This list is not meant to be all-inclusive, but instead offers a glimpse at some of the bright spots of the real-estate industry. In other words, these companies — which are listed alphabetically — could separate themselves from the pack in 2023.

☆ The CEO of one of America's biggest homebuilders said we're already in a 'housing recession,' and there are two other key signs that the real-estate market is still cooling
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( Robert Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Sheryl Palmer, CEO of Taylor Morrison, says the US is already in a housing recession. Some economists still aren't buying into the housing recession narrative. In 2023, Palmer said homebuyers should expect overall inventory volumes to drop as buyers scoop-up existing homes. Palmer's comments come on the heels of other business heads who expect the US housing market to have a tough year in 2023. But not everyone agrees that the US housing market is in a recession, or that it will face one in 2023.

☆ FTX's massive $256 million real-estate empire is up for grabs as Bahamian and US lawyers squabble over who should control it
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-15 | by ( Robert Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Lawyers representing the US and the Bahamas disagree on who should control FTX's massive real estate portfolio. A lawyer monitoring the case told Insider that the timing of the assets' disposal is more important than venue. According to a court filing from December 12, Bahamian lawyers asserted that Bankman-Fried spent more than $256 million to acquire 35 properties on the island. But, that total payout could change if regulators in one country or the other wait too long to liquidate the real estate assets, Pintarelli added. According to market data from brokerage BE Luxury Real Estate, the median sales price of Bahamian real estate grew from about $360,000 in 2020 to more than $630,000 through the first six months of 2021.

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